Percy Jackson and the Titans
by Chris Star
Summary: Changes in the past breed changes to the future. Seemingly simple changes can bring disastrous results, and everyone's fate can be changed by a single choice... (Rating may change)
1. Prologue:Past That Shaped Our Futures

Title: Percy Jackson and the Titans

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus

Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for creating the Percy Jackson-verse. Some credit should also go to fellow FF writer Takara Phoenix, as the basic plot was inspired by one of the alternate universes briefly glimpsed in her fic "All the Percybilities", and certain other details were inspired by details from her other fics (such as Percy's foster brother and a few pairings I've come to like purely because she portrays them in her fics).

Warnings: Because I'm not entirely sure the way the entire plot is going to unfold myself, I can't give a comprehensive list just yet. But I can pretty much guarantee shounen-ai, and state that shoujo-ai and character death are high in probability.

Main Pairings: Undecided. The major focused pairings will be who Percy and Leo end up with, but just who that is has yet to be decided. Voting is currently being held on my profile.

Side Pairings: Same applies to side pairings as main pairings. Voting is also held on my profile.

Summary: Ten-year-old Percy Jackson and his younger foster brother run away from home in the hopes of keeping their mother safe from the monsters that have begun stalking them since they've begun to exhibit weird powers. Fending for themselves on the streets for two years, they are eventually lead by a blond young man to a place that is a safe haven for those like themselves: Camp Half Blood. But this is not the happy ending we expect. Feeling abandoned by his father and shunned by the other campers, a heavy decision will sway a different way than fate predicted...

**Percy Jackson and the Titans**

_A single choice shall end his days_

_Olympus to preserve or raze_

Prologue: The Past That Shaped Our Futures

xXxLukexXx

Luke honestly couldn't remember the last time they'd had a break. They'd been running for so long, with those damn monsters behind them every step of the way. Granted the monsters had been after him ever since he had first made the decision to run away, but lately it had gotten so much worse. He hadn't understood why at first, but when his makeshift family had met Grover, it had all become clear.

"The more half bloods there are together, especially ones who are aware of being half bloods, the stronger the scent they give off to monsters. With five of you? It's really a miracle you survived long enough for me to find you!"

When Luke had originally set out, he had been alone. But gradually the group had filled out. For a while it had been just him and Thalia. Then they had found Annabeth. And then the latest additions to their family: the di Angelo siblings. Bianca was a little evasive about where she and her little brother had originally come from, but he didn't hold it against her. Demigods didn't exactly lead the happiest childhoods, regardless of whether or not they were aware of what they were.

"I don't think I can run anymore!"Nico gasped out, clinging tightly to his sister's hand. Luke glanced over his shoulder at the younger male. The poor kid wasn't exaggerating. He looked almost dead on his feet, Bianca all but dragging him to keep him going.

"It's not much further!"Grover gasped out, trying to encourage them to continue on. "Just hold out a little longer!"

The words had barely left his mouth when Luke heard a pained cry from Annabeth, the blond girl falling to the ground.

"My ankle!"Annabeth sobbed, attempting to stand but stumbling when she placed her weight on her right leg. Luke cursed under his breath, quickly lifting Annabeth into his arms bridal style. She was young and not exactly heavy, but Luke was so exhausted that even her additional weight felt like he was carrying an extra ton of bricks.

It was this moment that Luke would later suspect Annabeth would regret for the rest of her life. Her temporary stumble had stopped the group just long enough for the hellhounds that had been pursuing them to catch up. Luke could see the terror in Grover's eyes, but the satyr's job was to keep the demigods safe until they reached camp.

"I-I'll distract them as long as I can!"Grover exclaimed. "The camp is just over that hill! You're almost there! Just keep running!"

"But what about you?!"Bianca objected, supporting her brother's exhausted frame. Grover gave a weak smile.

"A Keeper's job is to see demigods safely to camp. Even if it costs us our lives."

Luke felt bad about leaving Grover behind, but just like the satyr, he had a responsibility to keep Thalia, Annabeth, Bianca, and Nico safe. He turned and continued running in the direction they'd been going, Annabeth cradled to his chest. He didn't have to look back to know that Thalia and Bianca had followed, Bianca still tugging Nico behind her.

Luke would never know exactly how well Grover had done to distract the hellhounds. All he knew was that by the time they'd reached the top of the hill overlooking camp, the hounds had caught up again, and there was no question what must have befallen the satyr.

"Dammit..."Thalia cursed under her breath, electric blue eyes looking between the hounds and the distance they still had left to run. "We're not all going to make it."

"Anyone got a plan?"Bianca asked shakily.

"You guys run..."Thalia said darkly. "I've got this handled."

"Are you insane?!"Luke argued. "How are you going to take them on by yoursel?!"

"Just run!"Thalia snapped back, glaring at the son of Hermes. To Luke's shock, he saw electricity sparking from her eyes and in her hands. He took a hesitant step back, then turned and continued toward the camp, Annabeth still cradled in his arms and Bianca and Nico following. He dared not look back as he heard Thalia yelling, the electricity crackling, a blue-white light washing out the entire area...

The hounds didn't catch up again. Whatever Thalia had done must have worked. But Thalia didn't join them again either...

xXxXxXx

Luke and the others were in the infirmary for two days, being attended to by children of Apollo. When they were allowed to be placed in cabins, Luke had demanded that he and his three surviving friends not be separated. That wish was only partially granted. He and Annabeth both knew who their immortal parent was. Luke was placed in Hermes Cabin, and Annabeth in Athena. When the camp director questioned whether or not the di Angelos knew the same, Bianca got a strange look on her face. After a few moments, she answered that no, they did not know who their father was. Nico seemed genuinely oblivious, but Luke got the feeling that Bianca knew and was just hiding it for whatever reason. But it worked out for them. Apparently, children yet to be claimed by their godly parent all ended up in Hermes Cabin, so at least he would still be with Bianca and Nico.

They had spent about a week getting used to life at the camp before Chiron gathered Luke, Annabeth, and the di Angelo siblings together, saying in a grave tone that he had something he needed to show them. Feeling equal parts dread and curiosity, the four children followed the centaur to the hill overlooking the camp. The last place they had seen Thalia... Luke was hesitant about going there again, but whatever Chiron had to show them seemed important.

"This tree wasn't here before."Annabeth murmured, gray eyes taking in the pine tree which was indeed a new addition. Luke hadn't really been paying very careful attention to his surroundings when they'd been here before, but he was pretty sure Annabeth was right. He didn't remember a large pine tree being here.

"This isn't just any pine tree."Chiron stated solemnly. "This is how Lord Zeus has chosen to preserve your friend."

Nico looked up at the centaur with wide, dark eyes. "Y-You mean... Thalia turned into this tree?"

Chiron nodded. "Her soul will be preserved here, watching over you. She will never be forced to enter the Underworld, and face Lord Hades' wrath."

Bianca's lips drew into a tight line. "You act like Hades would be harder on her than he is on everyone else."

"He would be."the centaur sighed. "The three greatest gods- Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades- made a pact many years ago to have any more demigod children. But Thalia was a daughter of Zeus. He broke that pact. And Lord Hades is not pleased with that fact."

Luke clenched his fists at his sides as he gazed up at the tree. He didn't like this. Bianca was hiding something. Thalia had been turned into a tree so Hades wouldn't torment her soul. Annabeth was slowly but surely drawing in on herself, blaming herself for Grover's and Thalia's deaths... his little family was falling apart, just as his first one had.

And it was all the gods' fault...

"I'll get even with them for this, Thals..."he said under his breath. "Just wait. They'll regret neglecting us..."

xXxXxXx

Author Notes: Trust me, I'm going to do my darnedest for the full chapters to be longer. This is just a set up for a few basic changes made to the canon universe that will have impacts on what happens later on. I only have a very basic idea for events so far, and I'm taking suggestions on how to progress things. And as stated above, I'm currently holding a poll on my profile for pairings to work with, both as major and minor ones. Looking at the vote list will make it pretty clear that I lean more toward MxM pairings, but I do have some FxF and MxF pairings to pick between as well. Please vote to help me decide how to progress!


	2. Chapter 1:My Little Brother Catches Fire

Title: Percy Jackson and the Titans

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus

Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for creating the Percy Jackson-verse. Some credit should also go to fellow FF writer Takara Phoenix, as the basic plot was inspired by one of the alternate universes briefly glimpsed in her fic "All the Percybilities", and certain other details were inspired by details from her other fics (such as Percy's foster brother and a few pairings I've come to like purely because she portrays them in her fics).

Warnings: Because I'm not entirely sure the way the entire plot is going to unfold myself, I can't give a comprehensive list just yet. But I can pretty much guarantee shounen-ai, and state that shoujo-ai and character death are high in probability.

Main Pairings: Undecided. The major focused pairings will be who Percy and Leo end up with, but just who that is has yet to be decided. Voting is currently being held on my profile.

Side Pairings: Same applies to side pairings as main pairings. Voting is also held on my profile.

Summary: Ten-year-old Percy Jackson and his younger foster brother run away from home in the hopes of keeping their mother safe from the monsters that have begun stalking them since they've begun to exhibit weird powers. Fending for themselves on the streets for two years, they are eventually lead by a blond young man to a place that is a safe haven for those like themselves: Camp Half Blood. But this is not the happy ending we expect. Feeling abandoned by his father and shunned by the other campers, a heavy decision will sway a different way than fate predicted...

**Percy Jackson and the Titans**

_A single choice shall end his days_

_Olympus to preserve or raze_

Chapter One: My Little Brother Catches Fire

xXxPercyxXx

Most kids in Percy Jackson's position right now would probably be pretty worried. After all, most kids who'd accidentally sent their classmates for an unplanned swim in a shark tank would be getting torn a new one by their parents. But things had never been what one could call 'normal' in Percy's life. He was feeling guilty, that was for sure, but more for causing his mother trouble than anything. But the way she just smiled at him and told him it was okay, that just made him feel even guiltier. His mother was just too nice and caring, and he hated to cause her any trouble.

If anyone was going to give the ten-year-old a 'proper punishment' for his actions, it would be his stepfather. Sally Jackson didn't approve of her husband's methods of punishment- usually involving either his fists or a belt- and usually tried to defend her son, but all that occomplished was getting herself hurt as well.

"Did the sharks try to eat anyone?"asked an innocent voice. Percy turned his sea green eyes to the little Latino boy sitting beside him, gazing up at him with wide brown eyes as they sat in the chairs outside the principal's office while their mother spoke with the man inside. Two years younger than Percy, the boy was his foster brother. How any foster child would be placed in a household with Gabe was beyond Percy. Maybe the fact that Sally was such a good mother made up for it. Or maybe the social worker on the little boy's case just wasn't as caring as she wanted them to think she was, and had just been eager to place the boy with whatever family would take him.

Even though he'd only been living with them for a couple of months now, Percy considered Leo his brother by everything but blood. The poor kid had been orphaned when his mother had died in a freak fire. Leo did have other relatives who reasonably should have been able to take him in, but they'd all refused to for one reason or another, Percy wasn't sure why. Leo had run away from two other foster homes before being placed in the care of his mother, and the boy had confided in his new older brother that it was because he never really felt accepted at any of the other homes, like he didn't belong. True living with Gabe was by no means pleasant, but the Latino was truly happy with his new foster mother and brother, for the first time since his mother had died.

"No, they just kinda... ignored them."Percy answered, fidgeting nervously as he knew it was only a matter of time before the adults emerged from the office. "Maybe they weren't hungry, I dunno."

"Did they... did they talk to you?"Leo questioned in a voice barely above a whisper, making sure no one else would overhear him.

It may have sounded like a stupid question to a passing stranger, but Leo was the only person Percy had felt he could trust with his secret. It was uncommon, and he didn't understand at all how or why it happened, but every once in a while, Percy could swear he heard voices coming from fish or other sea animals. He'd first noticed it when he was about Leo's age and had ducked into the pet store at the mall, having separated from his mother. He'd had a nice long conversation with the fish in the tanks there, the employees and customers both staring at him the whol time until his mother had arrived to collect him. He knew no adults would ever believe him, and the kids at school would just tease him. It wasn't like he had any friends. But Leo was different.

"No, not this time."Percy said again. "Nothing that big's ever talked to me before. Just little stuff like gold fish, or a turtle once."

"It's still really cool."Leo said, swinging his little legs that weren't quite long enough to reach the floor from the chair he was sitting on. "I wish I could do something cool like that."

Percy smiled softly down at his little brother, reaching over to affectionately ruffle his black curls.

"I'm sure you can do something."he smiled. "You're still young, Leo. I'm sure you'll find something you're plenty good at once you're older."

"You're not that much older than me!"Leo pouted, crossing his arms over his chest. "Don't act like I'm a little kid!"

xXxLeoxXx

If Leo were honest, he still sometimes had nightmares about that night six months ago. The night his mother had died.

He'd never told anyone the whole truth about what had happened that night. Not even Percy. Who would believe him? That some strange dirt woman had appeared and fire had somehow appeared in his hands? Well, maybe Percy would have believed him. He did talk to fish after all... But anyone else? He'd just be sent to a mental institution. So he'd just had to settle with claiming he had no idea about anything to do with the fire. Of course, that didn't stop them from thinking it had been all his fault (which in a way, he supposed it was). Especially his own family. He had plenty of living relatives, but not a single one of them had wanted to take him in. They all had held him responsible for his mother's death.

So he'd ended up in the foster system. The families that had taken care of him were of course told the circumstances of how he had been orphaned. The first two families had been just like his mother's relatives: they all thought he was an arsonist who had killed his mother, and treated him as such. So he'd run away. Both times he'd been caught, only to end up with another family.

The Jacksons were his third family, and he could honestly say that he was happy for the first time since his mother had died. It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows, of course. He couldn't stand Gabe. But Percy and Sally- as much as he loved the woman, he hadn't yet moved on enough to call her Mom- more than made up for it. Sally reminded him a lot of his mother, how open and kind she was. And he'd always wanted an older brother. He was sure Percy and Sally were just as happy to have him around as he was to be with them. That more than made up for the smelly jerk who he was able to mostly ignore.

But no matter how happy he was, it never really stopped the nightmares. They had definitely been lessened. While he used to have them every single night, now it was more like every third night. Sometimes Percy, who he shared a room with, would realize the dreams were plaguing him and would wake him before he reached the worst parts. His new big brother would then give him comfort and assurance until he would fall back asleep. But other nights, when Percy was already fast asleep before the dreams had begun, Leo would wake up screaming for his _mami_. Those were the nights when Percy alone couldn't give Leo all the comfort he needed, and Sally would have to hold the little Latino boy until he finally felt safe enough to go back to sleep.

When Percy had begun confiding in Leo about his fish-talk ability, he'd considered telling him the truth about the fire. But he was scared. Being able to talk to fish was one thing. Some might consider it weird, but there was no way he could hurt anyone with it. Well, not unless Percy turned inexpicably evil and ordered sharks and whales to start attacking boats or something. But fire was a huge threat, something that caused a lot of damage and death. True it could be used constructively if one knew how, but Leo wasn't someone who understood how to do that. So for now he was determined to keep his secret.

Little did he know that soon the cat would be out of the bag, whether he liked it or not...

xXxPercyxXx

Percy let out a sigh as he walked along the side walk. As expected, he'd ended up getting kicked out of school. He'd been kicked out of enough schools in the past few years that finding somewhere new to send him was a bit of a hassle for his mother. He'd been out of school for a week now, and she hadn't been able to get him in anywhere new just yet. He hated to be such a burden to her, and was determined to do what he could to help her out while he was out of school.

Which was how he found himself walking along the sidewalk to pick up Leo from his own school. Sally was working late tonight and wouldn't be able to pick him up. She didn't want Leo walking home alone, and knew that if she asked Gabe to go get him he would either forget or just decide not to bother. She'd been a little wary about sending Percy to get him- after all, Percy was only two years older than Leo- but she ultimately decided it was better than the eight-year-old Latino being on the streets alone.

"No, I don't wanna go!"a familiar voice whined. That was definitely Leo. Percy took off into a sprint, quickly reaching the front of the school. Class hadn't officially let out just yet, so the school yard was mostly empty. All except for the little boy and the primly dressed woman trying to pull him along by his arm.

"Hey, let him go!"Percy ordered, grabbing onto Leo's other hand. The woman looked at him in irritation, and Percy's eyes widened when he got a good look at her face. She seemed mostly normal, but there was something about her eyes that wasn't quite right. They had a distinctly reptilian look to them. But that couldn't be right...

"Who are you?"Percy demanded, hugging his foster brother close.

"My name is Miss Drake."the woman stated, looking at the little boy cooly. "It has recently come to our attention that young Leo is not in a safe household. The agency has decided to take him back to the group home and place him in a new home."

For a split second, Percy believed her. After all, living with Gabe wasn't exactly a good environment for a child, and Percy's own record likely made him look like a juvenile delinquent who would be a bad influence on Leo. But that moment was fleeting. If Leo really were being taken from their home, they wouldn't have sent someone to snatch him from school without a word to Sally. They would have come to the house, or at the very least contacted Sally to let her know that they planned to come and get him.

"You're lying."Percy said, narrowing his eyes at the woman. She gave an exasperated sigh.

"Pathetic little demigod... too smart for your own good."she murmured. "If you would have just kept out of it, we could have let you live for a little longer."

Percy wasn't entirely sure how it happened. One moment the woman looked completely normal, the next he was staring at what he could only describe as a snake woman. She still looked fairly humanoid, but where her legs should have been instead were two snake trunks supporting her weight.

"P-Percy, what is that?!"cried Leo. That was all the confirmation Percy needed that he wasn't the only one seeing this. He hadn't gone crazy. Or at least if he had, Leo was going just as crazy.

"Leo, run!"Percy yelled, bolting off down the sidewalk. Leo's hand was clasped tightly in his, and the smaller boy was doing everything he could to keep up with his brother. Percy could sense the monster woman following them. She was gaining quick, there was no way they could get away in time...

Percy was just about to turn a corner when a sharp pain scraped across his back, like something dragging claws across his skin. He stumbled to the cement with a pained cry, the cement badly scraping his cheek. His fall had caused Leo to stumble to his knees, though the Latino hadn't fallen as badly as he had.

"You should have stayed out of it, boy."Percy recognized the woman's voice. But there was the distinctive sound of a hissing on the 's' in her sentence.

"No, don't hurt him!"Leo sobbed. Percy managed to turn on his back in time to see the snake woman poised above him, preparing for another strike.

"NO!"

The next instant, the monster was burning. She shrieked in pain, stumbling back on her snake legs. Percy blinked in surprise. He didn't know what was going on, but this was his opportunity. He blinded reached for where he knew Leo should still be, only to cry out in pain as his hand was burned. He cradled the blistering appendage to his arm for a few moments before looking to Leo, eyes growing wide in horror.

Leo was on fire. On freaking fire. But he didn't seem to be burning. It was as if something was protecting him from the flames. Or were the flames coming directly from him?

"L-Leo...?"

"I'm sorry, Percy..."Leo sobbed. "I-I should have told you! But I didn't want you to hate me! To think I was a freak!"

Percy's expression softened. Still cradling his burned arm, he moved as close to his brother as he dared with the flames still burning around him.

"It's alright, Leo."he said softly. "I don't think you're a freak. I mean, I talk to fish, remember? You can control the fire, right? I need you to calm down to make it go away, alright?"

Leo sniffled tearfully, but nodded. It took a few moments, but gradually the fire faded away from around him. Once the flames had died down completely, Leo threw himself sobbing into his brother's arms. Percy held the younger boy close as he cried, but they couldn't stay there much longer.

"Someone call 911!"a voice called. "Those boys set that woman on fire!"

What? No, that wasn't right! It was a monster! She had tried to kill them! Why were they being blamed for this?!

Percy didn't know what it was, but for some reason the other people clearly couldn't see the monster for what it was. They thought he and Leo had burned and innocent woman to death. There was no way they could get out of this. No one would believe the truth.

"Leo, we have to go."Percy said urgently. "We have to get home, fast!"

xXxLeoxXx

Leo still had tears swimming in his eyes as he watched Percy hurriedly stuff a backpack full of clothes and a few other necessities. The first thing Percy had done when they'd arrived home was patch up his injuries- the lacerations on his back, the layer of skin torn off his cheek from the concrete, and the burns on his hand and arm. Then he'd grabbed the secret money Sally had been stashing hidden away from Gabe. Leo knew Percy felt bad taking the money, but Percy insisted they were going to need it.

"Do we really have to run away?"Leo whimpered. He could certainly do without living with Gabe, but he didn't want to leave Sally. When Percy looked at him, he could tell by the look in those sea green eyes that he didn't really want to leave either.

"We have to, Leo."Percy said softly, laying his hands on Leo's shoulders. "Even if we do somehow manage to not get in trouble for what happened, I doubt that's the last time we'll have monsters coming after us. I... I don't even think it's the first time I've had them after me." Leo wasn't sure what Percy meant by that, but the older boy continued. "And next time they might come straight to the house. And if that happens they might hurt mom. You don't want that to happen, do you?"

The very thought terrified Leo. He'd already lost his real mother, the last thing he wanted was for anything bad to happen to Sally. She'd been so good to him, the first person ever to do so since his mother's death.

"No..."he finally answered, looking sadly up at his brother. Percy nodded his head solemnly.

"Good. You need to pack some things. We can't take everything with us, you need to pack light. But anything that's really important for you to bring with you, make sure you take it now, because we won't be coming back. Do you need me to help you, or can you handle it?"

Leo shook his head, indicating he could handle it himself. He moved over to his section of the bedroom and began packing things into his back pack. Percy had handled all the necessities- the first aid kid, cash, some non-perishable food- so Leo focused on his own things. Clothes, a few small toys, the necklace the social workers had allowed him to keep as a memento of his mother-one of the few pieces of jewelry she'd owned. Esperanza Valdez hadn't exactly been big on pretty trinkets. The last thing he grabbed was the purple stuffed dragon Percy had given him as a gift not long after he'd come to stay with them. He'd said that the color had been symbolic of the fact that they were brothers now, combining Leo's favorite color, red, with Percy's, blue. His bag was stuffed at this point, so he settled for carrying the stuffed animal in his arms.

"Are you ready, Leo?"Percy asked, hoisting his own backpack onto his back and slinging the straps over his shoulders. Leo nodded solemnly, hugging the dragon close.

"You're taking Happy with you?"Percy smiled softly. "Good, maybe he can help protect us."

Leo managed a smile at the comment. It was too bad they didn't have a real dragon to look after them. That would do them a lot more good than Happy the Stuffed Dragon could.

xXxPercyxXx

Percy would honestly kill to sleep in a real bed again. It had been so long now, he was beginning to forget what that actually felt like. He and Leo had been on the streets for a month now. While the money he'd taken from his mother was stretching well enough to keep them fed- and even that was running thin now- he had known that it would just be far too expensive for them to pay for a hotel room. They'd made do sleeping on park benches and anywhere else they could find. He was grateful he'd thought to pack a second bag with their winter coats and other gear for when the cold set in.

"I wish we could go home, Percy..."Leo murmured miserably, staring at the fire dancing in his hands. He'd been practicing his control since the incident a month ago. He still had a few accidents here and there, but overall he seemed to be doing well.

"Me too, Leo. But you know we can't do that."

A few days after they'd left home, Percy had overheard a news story about the incident while paying for their tab at a diner. According to witnesses, he and Leo had used a lighter and set fire to and killed an innocent social worker who was 'just doing her job' and trying to take Leo away from an unfit home. There had been no remains to examine, she had simply been burned to dust and ashes.

"They'll never believe that it was a monster, or how the fire really started."Percy sighed.

"Yeah..."Leo agreed. "Especially since they're still blaming me for when mom died. I mean... I guess technically the fire was my fault, but it wasn't like it's what I meant to happen."

Percy didn't question just how the fire that had taken Leo's mother's life had come about. He figured if Leo really wanted to talk about it, he'd bring it up on his own. He knew well that some things were just hard to explain, even to someone you would expect to understand.

"We'll figure something out."Percy promised Leo, putting an arm around the younger boy's shoulders. "We won't be on the streets for the rest of our lives. I promise."

"I know. I trust you, Percy."Leo said, extinguishing the flames and tightly hugging Happy to his chest as he leaned into his brother's side.

Percy was determined to keep that promise. Now he just had to figure out HOW.

xXxXxXx

Author Notes: So if it wasn't clear, I'm basically titling the chapters in a way similar to how they were in the original series, but doing the actual writing in a style closer to how it was done in Heroes of Olympus. For what I have planned to work, I need at least POVs from both Percy and Leo, and will likely need them for some others in future chapters as well.

Also, some ages are going to be adjusted in the story. Not going to give a comprehensive list, but for one Nico is going to be closer to Percy and Annabeth's age.

Still taking suggestions for events, and holding a poll through my profile for the pairings to work with.


	3. Chapter 2: My Brother Is My Cousin?

Title: Percy Jackson and the Titans

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus

Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan fro creating the Percy Jackson-verse. Some credit should also go to fellow FF writer Takara Phoenix as the basic plot was inspired by one of the alternate universes breifly glimpsed in her fic "All the Percybilities", and certain other details were inspired by details from her other fics such as Percy's foster brother and a few pairings I've come to like purely because she portrays them in her fics).

Warnings: Because I'm not entirely sure the way the entire plot is going to unfold myself, I can't give a comprehensive list just yet. But I can pretty much guarantee shounen-ai, and state that shoujo-ai and character death are high in probability.

Main Parings: Undecided. The major focused pairings will be who Percy and Leo end up with, but just who that is has yet to be decided. Voting is currently being held on my profile.

Side Pairings: Same applies to side pairings as main pairings. Voting is also held on my profile.

Summary: Ten-year-old Percy Jackson and his younger foster brother run away from home in the hopes of keeping their mother safe from the monsters that have begun stalking them since they've begun to exhibit weird powers Fending for themselves on the streets for two years, they are eventually lead by a blond young man to a place that is a safe haven for those like themselves: Camp Half Blood. But this is not the happy ending we epect Feeling abandoned by his father and shunned by the other campers, a heavy decision will sway a different way than fated predicted..

**Percy Jackson and the Titans**

_A single choice shall end his days_

_Olympus to preserve or raze_

Chapter Two: My Brother is My Cousin?

xXxLukexXx

_"Halfbloods flee from a fate most dire_

_Child of sea and child of fire_

_Now approaches the fated time_

_Bring to light an innocent crime_

_The search shall keep you close to home_

_Crowds of mortals children roam_

_Time shall test the child of rain_

_Saved or cursed by all his pain_

_Heart filled both with love and hate_

_While in his hands is held all's fate."_

Luke tried to wrap his head around the meaning of the prophecy he had just heard as the sickly green mist faded and the 'container' of the Oracle slumped once more in its seat. He wanted to figure out as much of it as he could on his own before descending down to talk to Chiron and his 'siblings'.

When he'd asked for a second chance to go on a quest- the scar on his left cheek throbbed slightly at the though of his first quest- he hadn't expected it to basically amount to the job satyrs were normally sent out on. But the details were intriguing enough that the mild annoyance this brought was pushed to the back of his mind. 'Child of sea'... there was only one thing he could think of that could possibly mean.

A child of Poseidon. One of the Big Three. Another break in the pact between the eldest gods. Just like Thalia had been. Apparently swearing on the River Styx wasn't so binding for the immortals. But the phrasing of the prophecy made it clear there were two demigods he would be hunting down. 'Child of fire' didn't narrow it down quite as much as 'child of sea' did, but it did narrow it to either a child of Ares, Hephaestus, or Hestia. Though Hestia was doubtful. She was one of the virginal goddesses, would never have children by conventional methods. There had been some curious discussion amongst campers that Hestia and Artemis may have some 'alternate methods' of having children like Athena did, but there was no confirmation to these theories, no children of either goddess to vouch for the possibility.

It was the last few lines of the prophecy that really got Luke thinking. They had seemed to take on a different tone from the first part, almost as if they were a second prophecy entirely. Luke wasn't really sure what the words meant, but maybe...

Chiron didn't need to know about that part of the prophecy, he decided. The first lines told them all they really needed to know for their quest. The rest would be Luke's own business to be adressed later.

Decision made, Luke descended from the attic, making his way out onto the porch surrounding the Big House. Annabeth eagerly looked up at him once he stepped out, now completely ignoring the lesson she had only been half paying attention to of Nico trying to teach her how to play Mythomagic. One would think a kid who knew his father must be one of the gods and lived with a bunch of kids of other gods wouldn't be interested in such a thing, but Nico was unique Luke supposed. Bianca and Chiron were standing a little ways away from the house as they waited for his return.

"I take it things went... well?"the centaur questioned.

"As well as ever going up there is."Luke said, running his fingers back through his blond hair.

"So you got a prophecy?"Nico asked, standing up from his chair to approach his 'brother'. Luke nodded, before reciting the part of the prophecy he'd chosen to share.

"_Halfbloods flee from a fate most dire_

_Child of sea and child of fire_

_Now approaches the fated time_

_Bring to light an innocent crime_

_The search shall keep you close to home_

_Crowds of mortals children roam."_

"Wait, the Oracle's sending you to collect demigods?"Bianca frowned. "Isn't that normally a satyr's job?"

"Well, maybe there's something special about these ones that a satyr isn't good enough."Annabeth volunteered.

"Child of sea..."Chiron murmured with a thoughful expression. The centaur was clearly thinking the same thing as Luke had.

"It has to be a child of Poseidon, right?"Luke said. Chiron nodded solemnly.

"Yes. No doubt he will be drawing a great many monsters to him. That must be why the Oracle would send heroes for him rather than a satyr."

"_The search shall keep you close to home. Crowds of mortals children roam."_ Annabeth repeated the last two lines. "That probably means they're in a mortal city. And close to home... close to Camp then? Putting those together, they're probably in New York?"

"Well then this is a pretty simple prophecy, ain't it?"Nico laughed.

"It's that middle part I'm having trouble deciphering."Bianca frowned. "_Now approaches the fated time. Bring to light an innocent crime._ What could that mean?"

"Oftentimes parts of a prophecy don't make sense until after they have already come to pass."Chiron said with a shake of his head. "Thinking too hard on it doesn't give you any progress."

"He's right."Luke sighed. "If we spend all our time trying to figure out what it could mean, we'll never actually get what me need to done."

"Remember, Luke."Chiron spoke up once more. "Only three may go."

Luke frowned as he looked between the three demigods that were like siblings to him. None of them had gone with him on his first quest. They'd all been too young at the time, not that they had been reasonable enough back then to realize that. All three of them had refused to talk to him in the short time before he left. That had been quick to change when he had returned to camp, failed and injured...

Luke shook his head, not wanting to dwell on that. All three of them were older now, better trained. Still young and rusty, but not so badly as they had been back then. And based on the prophecy alone, he was sure this quest wouldn't be as dangerous as the last one.

"We already know how this is going to go."Nico said, mock sulking. "Same reasoning as last time, yeah? I'm the youngest, so I gotta stay behind." He smiled softly to the older male. "I get it. I'm not gonna be a brat about it like last time. Don't get me wrong, I do wanna go. Like REALLY bad. But I get it. Annie and Bianca are the better choices. As long as you all come back safe, I can live with that."

Luke smiled lightly, glad to see the Italian boy being mature about this. Most eleven-year-olds would surely be sulking in his position. He affectionately ruffled the black hair.

"Don't worry, Nico. We'll all make it back. I swear."he said before turning to the female demigods. "We're leaving right after dinner. Make sure you're ready."

Both girls nodded, a slight gleam in both their eyes. This would be the first quest for the both of them, and Luke could tell they were both excited.

xXxPercyxXx

It had been a long, hard two years. Percy had known living on the streets would be tough. He'd never had any illusions to the contrary. But he hadn't expected the monsters to be appearing more and more frequently the longer they were out here. If he were honest, he was pretty sure they would have been dead by now if not for Leo's power.

The Latino had more or less mastered the flames at this point. Sure, there were still the occasional lapses, such as his ears catching fire whenever he was embarrassed about something, but overall he seemed to know what he was doing. Percy was glad for that, particularly since mastering the flames had seemed to be good for Leo's coping, not just with the fact that they were on the streets, but with all the events that had led to that being the case. Leo was clearly just as ragged from life on the streets- and being attacked by monsters- as Percy was, but the younger boy was surprisingly upbeat about life in general, cracking silly jokes and being overall bouncy and energetic. Percy had to admit that having Leo with him did keep his own spirits up. If he'd been alone, he probably would have sunk into depression a long time ago.

It had been another long day when Percy sat at one of the benches in a small park, watching Leo play alone on the play equipment. He'd been playing with some other kids his age earlier, but they had all since returned home for dinner. Percy and Leo would be sleeping here for the night. It was the tail end of spring right now, so fairly warm. They didn't need to worry about huddling together somewhere where no cold breezes could reach them.

"Hey, Perce!"Leo called over to his brother, hanging upside down from his knees on a set of monkey bars. "This'd all be a lot less depressing if it wasn't just the two of us, y'know? Don't get me wrong, I love you! But it does get kinda... lonely sometimes."

"Yeah, I know..."Percy said with a wistful smile. He had to admit that as much as he still acted it sometimes, Leo wasn't the same innocent child he had been when they'd met. Leo was the same age now as Percy had been when they'd first run away, and as childish as he acted a lot of the time, he still had more maturity than someone his age should really have to develop.

"Here comes another one."Leo's voice interrupted Percy's thoughts again. He glanced at Leo for a moment, then followed the Latino's gaze to find that, yes, there was another monster approaching. At first it had just seemed like a bird approaching in the distance, but as it grew closer Percy recognized it as one of those weird bird women they'd faced before. He honestly had no idea what they were actually called, he didn't know what most of the monsters he and Leo had seen over the past two years were called, but this was a regular occurance. Ever since their encounter with 'Miss Drake', it had been like they had a target on their backs that monsters were following. At first it hadn't been too often. Once every two weeks or so. But lately, they were lucky if they could go three days without being attacked by something.

Percy stood from the bench as Leo dropped down from the monkey bars. He didn't like doing this at all, but it was this or death. Not exactly a hard choice.

Leo had just summoned fire to his hands and was preparing to attack when suddenly the winged woman was struck by an arrow. Percy blinked in surprise as the monster gave a pained cry and came down to the ground. But it wasn't dead. Percy had learned enough about these things to know that they turned into dust when they died. Which also had explained why there had been no body left when they'd killed 'Miss Drake' two years ago. Sea green eyes drifted in the direction the arrow had come from, growing more confused by the second.

The first one that caught his attention was the one who must have attacked the monster. She held an archery bow in her hands, clearly poised in position that told Percy she had just loosed an arrow. She looked a little older than Percy himself, but only by about a year or so. Her skin had a distinct olive tone to it, and her hair was mostly black, falling around her shoulders and down her back to nearly her waist, a noticable curl on the last few inches of the otherwise straight locks. But there were sections that Percy supposed must have been bleached, as he couldn't tell if they were just a really pale blonde or completely white, and these sections were braided. How she managed to perfectly braid the white/blonde sections without accidentally catching some black strands, or conversely accidentally leaving some pale strands loose with the black, Percy couldn't even begin to guess. She was wearing black jeans and combat boots, accompanied by an orange hoodie that Percy honestly thought looked a bit heavy for the warm weather. There was something written on the hoodie, but Percy couldn't make it out from here.

The second was a girl he was fairly sure was his own age. Her blond hair was definitely curly all the way up, even pulled into a ponytail he was sure of that. She held what looked from here like a knife in her hands, but the color was a little odd. Sort of a coppery color. She was wearing rather plain jeans and sneakers, and her t-shirt was the same orange as the older girl's hoodie.

The last among them was the only male in the group. There was no question in Percy's mind that he was definitely older than him by several years, in high school at the very least. He held a sword in one hand, the same coppery color as the dagger the blonde girl was carrying. His sandy blond hair was cut short, and just like both girls, the shirt he wore under a denim jacket was orange. Percy was seriously starting to question the signifigance of that color to the three...

"_Child of fire_ the prophecy said."stated the dark-haired girl, her eyes leveled on Leo. Percy could barely detect the slightest hint of an accent, but he wasn't sure what kind. He guessed she must have originally been born somewhere else, but judging by how subtle the accent was she'd likely been away from 'home' for a very long time. "I'd say a kid with flames in his hands qualifies, right, Luke?"

The male of the group nodded. "The prophecy didn't really specifically say that they'd be together... but seems too much of a coincidence to me. Plus, the other one clearly sees the harpy. So he's either the other one, or a mortal who can see through the Mist."

Percy's head was spinning trying to figure out what they were talking about. Prophecy? Mist? What was going on...?

"Percy, look out!"he heard Leo yell.

xXxBiancaxXx

Bianca wouldn't lie, it was damn satisfying seeing her arrow striking a monster and not just a stationary wooden target in the middle of camp. It hadn't taken them long after they'd arrived at camp years ago for Bianca to figure out that, quite honestly, she sucked with a sword. She didn't deny it, she wasn't ashamed of it. It was just a fact of life. But she'd been just as quick to realize that she was really good with a bow and arrow. Some of the campers had theorized that maybe that meant she was a daughter of Apollo. Bianca had answered this with an evasive 'maybe', but she knew full well that wasn't the case.

Bianca turned her dark eyes to the two children the Harpy had been preparing to attack. They looked about Annabeth's and Nico's age, and it didn't take a genius to figure out that the poor kids lived on the streets. That explained the part of the propechy about 'roaming'. She wondered how long they'd been on their own. But that wasn't the only thing that drew her attention.

"_Child of fire_ the prophecy said."she said to Luke, seeing that the younger boy's hands were burning. "I'd say a kid with flames in his hands qualifies, right, Luke?"

Luke nodded beside her. "The prophecy didn't really specifically say that they'd be together... but seems too much of a coincidence to me. Plus, the other one clearly sees the harpy. So he's either the other one, or a mortal who can see through the Mist."

Bianca was about to respond, when the harpy suddenly twitchd up, flying toward the older boy with a sharp burst of speed.

"Percy, look out!"the Latino boy yelled, flinging the fireball in his hands at the monster, but missing as it was moving too fast. Bianca cursed, pulling another arrow from the quiver across her back, but she knew she wouldn't be quick enough. The kid was going to be jerky...

Maybe her eyes were playing tricks on her, but she was sure the saw a faint blue glow in the boy's eyes just as the water from the nearby fountain crashed over the harpy in a hard wave, smacking her down into the gravel and pushing her back several feet. She heard Annabeth beside her give an awed gasp, none of them having ever seen such a thing from a demigod before. The boy's partner seemed pretty unfased, however, as a mere few seconds later he was tossing the fireball held in his other hand. Somehow the flames were strong enough to catch the monster aburst despite the fact that she was soaked, and the creature's pained screams filled the air as she burned, breaking down into ash and the supernatural dust that all monsters became on their defeat.

"_Di immortales_..."Luke muttered. "To have that much power so young... and to control it without any trainng..."

The two older demigods stood together as Annabeth approached the two strangers. The younger boy was checking to make sure the older truly hadn't been injured by the harpy, but all the while chattering about how cool it was about how they apparently weren't the only ones who had actually seen it this time. Bianca figured it would be best to let Annabeth talk to them first. She was about their age, and would be easier for them to relate to. True Bianca wasn't exactly old, she was only a year older than Annabeth... well, that depended on how technical you wanted to be, she supposed. Based on year of birth...

She shook her head. No one else knew about that, and she wanted to keep it that way. Nico had been young enough during those times that she was even able to get away with convincing him there was nothing out of the ordinary. She supposed sooner or later she should tell at least Nico if no one else, but for now, she would bear that knowledge on her own.

"So you guys can see the monsters too?!"the Latino was saying excitedly to Annabeth. "That's awesome! No one else can ever see them! They act like we're going crazy! Our first monster, that snake lady-!"

"Leo, breathe."the other boy stated, sea green eyes leveled on the blonde girl. "I'm glad we finally met someone else who sees them... but why can you? And why can't anyone else?"

"That's really a pretty long story."Annabeth explained, placing her dagger in the sheathe at her hip. "But the short version is, with only a few exceptions, regular humans just can't see the monsters for what they are. The Mist hides their true form. And for the most part that's fine, because monsters don't attack normal humans."

"That's not true."the Latino frowned. "They attack us all the time."

"But you're not exactly normal humans."Bianca spoke up, approaching the group of younger children with Luke at her side. "I think that should be pretty obvious, even if you don't really know what you are."

The two boys looked at her in confusion, then exchanged glances. They seemed to be holding a silent conversation before the older one finally sighed and said,

"Okay. So what are we?"

xXxLeoxXx

Leo could tell Percy had been reluctant to trust the three strangers. But when they'd offered to feed them... well, that was about all it took to win Leo over. Percy had done his best to keep them fed, but ever since spending the last of the money they had taken from Sally, which had only lasted a couple of months, it had been tough going.

Leo managed to listen to the three explain things even as he wolfed down the McDonald's the eldest, Luke as he'd been introduced, had bought for them. If these three were to be believed, they were demigods, children of the Greek gods of the old myths. Luke claimed to be a son of Hermes, while the blonde girl, Annabeth, was a daughter of Athena. The black-and-white-haired girl, Bianca, said she didn't know who her father was, but the fact that she drew monsters was all the proof their guardian needed that she and her younger brother were demigods.

"And of course, some demigods even have special powers inherited from their godly parents."Luke was now explaining. "Which would explain your... fire and water abilities."

Leo looked to Percy to see how he was taking this all. When they'd first run away, the only thing odd about Percy, other than that the monsters seemed just as eager to get to him as they were to get to Leo, had been that he could talk to fish. But within that first year, Percy had stumbled on the greater power he had exhibited in his last fight. They'd been fighting against some weird female monster with mismatched legs, one who had controlled fire herself. Leo's flames had no effect. He'd thought for sure they were doomed. To this day they weren't sure if it had been pure desperation or something else, but Percy had managed to cause a burst of water to explode from a nearby fire hydrant and attack the creature. It wasn't enough to defeat her, but enough to keep her down long enough for the two boys to run.

Percy hadn't really understood how he'd made it hapen at first. But over the time since then, he had slowly been working to understand and control it, just as Leo had done with his flames. In a way, Leo had been glad when Percy had discovered the strange power. It was just one more way in which they were the same, yet different from everyone else.

"So if we were to believe you, and I'm not saying yet that we do,"Percy said, sea green eyes looking between the three across the table from them. "Then who are our godly parents supposedly?"

"Well, there are a couple possibilities for Leo."Annabeth said calmly. "Ares or Hephaestus. Hestia has power over fire too, but she's one of the virginal goddesses so that rule her out."

"If I am a demigod, it's definitely on my dad's side, so yeah, not Hestia."Leo said around a mouthful of cheeseburger.

Annabeth nodded before continuing her thought. "But as far a our records state, only children of Hephaestus have ever been given the gift of controlling fire. And even among them it's incredibly rare."

"As for you..."Bianca spoke up, dark eyes settled on Percy. Bianca's eyes sort of creeped Leo out. She was nice enough, but that look in her eyes... he couldn't put his finger on it, but something just wasn't quite normal about them. "Unless we look at minor sea and river gods, none of which have ever had demigod children before and are unlikely to have suddenly started now, there's really only one option. Poseidon."

Percy laughed, though Leo wasn't sure if it was in amusement or denial.

"You expect me to believe that I'm the son of one of the oldest, most powerful gods?"he said.

"So you would believe us if we said you were the son of a weaker god?"Luke asked with an arched eyebrow.

"This entire thing is unbelievable!"Percy countered. "But that's the straw that broke the camel's back."

"How else do you explain your powers, then?"Bianca questioned calmly.

"I... I dunno..."Percy finally confessed.

"Look, you'll just have to trust us."Luke said. "I mean look at the alternative. Living on the street, eating what little scraps you can find, constantly being attacked by monsters. Can trusting in us really be any worse than that?"

Leo anxiously waited for Percy to make a decision. He could tell his brother was thinking hard about his decision, looking at all the options objectively. Finally, Percy looked at Luke and said.

"Alright. But if it turns out you're lying to us, luring us into something... You'll regret it."

xXxXxXx

_Author's Note: Yeah, I know my prophecy isn't exactly... good. Maybe it even outright sucks. I originally wasn't going to bother introducing a full prophecy for finding Percy and Leo, just offhandedly mention in the narrative that Luke received one before leaving. Then I decided doing so would be a good opportunity for a prophecy more closely related to the central point of the story: what better time for Luke to hear it than as part of a joint prophecy already related to Percy?_

_The voting is still being held on my profile for deciding the couples (or in some options, threesomes) portrayed in the story. So far I've only had one person vote, and I don't want to base my decisions on a single opinion. If I don't get more people, I'll just go with the pairings I'd been leaning toward without taking any input into consideration..._

_Since Fanfiction only lets you have one poll at a time active on your profile page, I'm using a separate site to host another poll related to the story: I'm considering adding some OC demigods to the story (whether they'll be simply as campers or as members of the Titan Army, I'm not yet certain), and would like some feedback on this decision as well. Please vote, even if it's just to vote that I DON'T include any of them. Note that I don't really have plans for any of these OCs to be romantic interests of any canon characters should they be included, but they MAY end up being so depending on how I pair up canon characters._

_ poll pollcode com/4684558 (replace spaces with dots)  
_


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